Bee Log Notations, Year 2
Last year I logged my hives in a special calendar i made - and wrote about in this entry. It fit how I think- and it started to overcome some of the shortcomings I was having in trying to get things done at the right time, and in visualizing what needed to be done later. It's about visualizing- and seeing a situation quickly- without words. Other people likely don't have an issue with this- they don't forget- or they don't have too many hives, and can remember what the heck they did, or saw. I can't. I actually can't even with one hive- and I am trying to work with 18 right now- and it takes about a day to totally forget what I did the day before.
For architects (which is my day job), we (I generalize), rely on graphical thinking. Its a very central concept- why all architects need to draw well- and means that when you draw, half your brain- or part of it, is on the paper. It is both a creative act- to draw- and in an informative one- to evaluate and develop- and understand- base on what you yourself have drawn. There is no receptacle in the mind that can match it. It's recursive. Like playing music- you play something- listen- and adjust and revise- and play something better.
So this is about using your eyes- to see not words (though there are some), but time, and color. And from that, make decisions, understand the situation, and mostly feel like things are under control. No- or fewer- surprises.
A regular log , with a page each for a hive, is what I have done for many years. I would go into a hive-and I wrote some notes. It was OK. But lacked a critical thing- I wasn't seeing the whole- I wasn't seeing what was coming down the line, or what the time of what I had just done, or would need.
This system is really just a calendar- but about 8 feet long. It folds up into a book. I have some color pencils ready. I go through a hive- and I pick the right color- and color the square for the day. Is there a queen? Are there mites? I have colors for that. And after everything is done, I can see- I can see how bad or good things are, and what I need to do. I mark the future- I mark what needs to be done 2 weeks from now, and although I don't always get to it- I see it. And later, I see it.
In addition- I can count days, and know when a queen might emerge, or when I need to do the next mite treatment. If a queen hatches in 16 days, and I see a new queen cell with an egg, I can see when I might expect a queen. For this, I have a ruler- with all sorts of timelines on it (development, Snelgrove times, mite treatments are the main items). I lay it on the chart and can read it into the future.
Its not perfect- but this years is better I think - more room, less words. More color. I found I was writing too much last year- and it was too small (half this size).
To get to this- I had to distill both "observations" and "actions"- what mattered. I know I don't have every condition- but its distilled- for me. And- I can always add notes if I want to be specific. If I see red- a red square- that means I don't see eggs, or a queen, and I need to do something. If I see blue- its OK-no action needed.
I doubt that anyone else would want to use this- but maybe it will inspire someone to do better. I don't doubt that the gen-x or whoever came after them- and after them- figure there's some smart phone app that they can dial in and will have some sort of ring tone happen when there's a swarm. But that's not going to happen here- not with me- it needs to be on paper. It needs to be something I can carry and throw in my truck. It needs to be something I can lay out on a table. I feel that pretty strongly- and this seems to be working. I'll add some pictures later as it gets filled out.
Link to the current log is on main page of this blog- feel free to use. If its inspiring, but you see adjustments that need to be made for your circumstances- I'd be glad to do them!
For architects (which is my day job), we (I generalize), rely on graphical thinking. Its a very central concept- why all architects need to draw well- and means that when you draw, half your brain- or part of it, is on the paper. It is both a creative act- to draw- and in an informative one- to evaluate and develop- and understand- base on what you yourself have drawn. There is no receptacle in the mind that can match it. It's recursive. Like playing music- you play something- listen- and adjust and revise- and play something better.
So this is about using your eyes- to see not words (though there are some), but time, and color. And from that, make decisions, understand the situation, and mostly feel like things are under control. No- or fewer- surprises.
A regular log , with a page each for a hive, is what I have done for many years. I would go into a hive-and I wrote some notes. It was OK. But lacked a critical thing- I wasn't seeing the whole- I wasn't seeing what was coming down the line, or what the time of what I had just done, or would need.
This system is really just a calendar- but about 8 feet long. It folds up into a book. I have some color pencils ready. I go through a hive- and I pick the right color- and color the square for the day. Is there a queen? Are there mites? I have colors for that. And after everything is done, I can see- I can see how bad or good things are, and what I need to do. I mark the future- I mark what needs to be done 2 weeks from now, and although I don't always get to it- I see it. And later, I see it.
In addition- I can count days, and know when a queen might emerge, or when I need to do the next mite treatment. If a queen hatches in 16 days, and I see a new queen cell with an egg, I can see when I might expect a queen. For this, I have a ruler- with all sorts of timelines on it (development, Snelgrove times, mite treatments are the main items). I lay it on the chart and can read it into the future.
Form when printed is 8 or 9 feet long and goes through October. This is just the first few weeks of May. In this case, on the right, you can see a green strip indicating upcoming blackberry. |
To get to this- I had to distill both "observations" and "actions"- what mattered. I know I don't have every condition- but its distilled- for me. And- I can always add notes if I want to be specific. If I see red- a red square- that means I don't see eggs, or a queen, and I need to do something. If I see blue- its OK-no action needed.
I doubt that anyone else would want to use this- but maybe it will inspire someone to do better. I don't doubt that the gen-x or whoever came after them- and after them- figure there's some smart phone app that they can dial in and will have some sort of ring tone happen when there's a swarm. But that's not going to happen here- not with me- it needs to be on paper. It needs to be something I can carry and throw in my truck. It needs to be something I can lay out on a table. I feel that pretty strongly- and this seems to be working. I'll add some pictures later as it gets filled out.
Link to the current log is on main page of this blog- feel free to use. If its inspiring, but you see adjustments that need to be made for your circumstances- I'd be glad to do them!
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